A Christian schoolboy not allowed to sit for an exam of Islamic Studies

A Christian school boy was not allowed to sit for an Islamic Studies exam, in a school in Jaranwala in Punjab province. The exam superintendent disallowed him to sit in the exam merely because he was a Christian. As a result, the boy did not pass the Islamic Studies exam. It has been learnt that the case has been reported to the higher authorities of the Education Board, and the concerned official has give his word that impartial investigations will be carried out.

In line with details, the contemptible incident took place on March 29, when 13-year-old, Naveed Rafique was bared from appearing in the viva exam of the Islamic Studies. The exam superintendent did not allow Naveed to sit for the exam because he had not done “wuzu” or cleaning ritual carried out before Islamic prayers.

The superintendent told Naveed that he can not recite the verses from Islamic holy book because he had not done wuzu. He said that in order to appear for the viva exam of the Islamic Studies, he needs to perform wuzu. The Christian teenager did not know how to perform wuzu; therefore, he was not allowed to take the viva exam. Consequently, Naveed failed to secure passing marks, although he was a position holder and had a luminous past record in previous classes.

According to the rules, the Islamic Studies exam carries 100 marks; 75 marks for the written exam and 25 marks for the viva exam. Naveed secured a total of 27 marks out of 25 in his written exam and owing to the fact that he was not allowed to take the viva exam, he failed to secure 33% marks which are the passing marks for any subject. The incident was reported to the related Education Board while afterwards, the Education Assistant Director of the middle school examinations stated that he is carrying out an investigation into the incident.

Pakistan which currently, ranks at number 6 of the 2016 list of most dangerous countries for the Christians to live in. The country is currently witnessing a continuous upsurge in religious intolerance or faith based prejudice. According to Open Doors, last year saw the highest level of persecution of Christians in Pakistan. Furthermore, the issue of anti-Christian content in the school textbooks is another alarming issue open to discussion, nowadays.